One day while he was scrolling through his emails, Johnathan Behm 12 saw he had received a message from the Colorado Rockies asking if he would like to be an MLB draft prospect. The first thing he thought was, “It was a humbling experience, I was just glad that it happened because I worked so hard.”

Behm has worked extremely hard to get to where he is today as a recognizably successful young athlete should. As facts have shown, when one wants to reach the professional level, one must play hard and work harder. Behm understands this better than most and demonstrates his commitment to his sport by practicing at least once every day for an hour or more. He has done this with few breaks for many years and now it is paying off.

When putting in this much work, one must take care of their body in order to avoid potential career ending injuries. A correct warm-up can mean the difference between a great game and athletic disaster. Behm makes sure he is properly warmed up by showing up to the field an hour or so early. He will then spend his time jogging and stretching his legs and especially his arms to assure that he does not injure himself mid game.

When asked what drives him to succeed, Behm responded “I want to be the best and just have fun with it.” He has been playing baseball for around thirteen years and realized five years ago that he might be good enough to actually go places. Since the MLB noticed, in 4-5 years he might be playing for some professional team.

The magnitude of Behm’s success leaves his parents with an overwhelming feeling of pride for their son. When he found out that he had a chance to go to the MLB, Behm called his mom who teared up with pride. Unbeknownst to him, his mom bought him a cake and over fifty balloons and surprised him at school.

It’s rare that people outside of Colorado know about the small town of Monument, where Behm is from. However, after Behm’s accomplishments, the quiet little town might earn its spot on the map.